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1125881

registered interest
date	10/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Autism
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she make it her policy to provide autism awareness training for staff in (a) her Department and (b) Jobcentres.
tabling member constituency	Bristol West
tabling member printed	Thangam Debbonaire
uin	252854
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>DWP has a Diversity and Equality Policy Statement. Every person working for the Department has a personal responsibility for implementing and promoting these commitments in their day-to-day dealings with customers, with each other and with employers and partners. Inappropriate behaviour is not acceptable.</p><p> </p><p>DWP have developed Autism Awareness training for all DWP operational staff, using information from the National Autistic Society. This training explains what Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are and how they may impact on a claimants’ daily life, including how this impacts individuals differently. This helps DWP staff be aware of how they can offer appropriate support. The training also focuses on what support DWP can provide to help customers with ASD secure employment, highlighting the tailored support available and focusing on what positive strengths customers with ASD can offer a prospective employer.</p><p> </p><p>Within the Fundamental Learning Journey for all DWP Operational roles, we have learning for Supporting Vulnerable Adults (hosted by Civil Service Learning), Safeguarding children and for Adults and Equality and Diversity.</p><p> </p><p>There is DWP technical learning specifically for staff who need to look at medical evidence for particular medical conditions as part of their job role. This covers the likely care needs for more common medical conditions and signposts to more detailed guidance.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 20/05/2019 16:41:15 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4433 label Biography information for Thangam Debbonaire

1125925

registered interest
date	10/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Food Banks
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the effect of the sanctions system on levels of foodbank use among claimants.
tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
uin	252866
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) does not keep official statistics on foodback use as there are many reasons why people use foodbanks.</p><p>Nevertheless, as a measured safeguard The Department offers financial support to those claimants who have been sanctioned. We have a well-established system of hardship payments for claimants who cannot meet their immediate and most essential needs, including accommodation, heating, food and hygiene, as a result of their sanction.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/05/2019 15:21:59 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney

1125532

registered interest
date	09/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Unemployment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of children in workless households.
tabling member constituency	North East Hampshire
tabling member printed	Mr Ranil Jayawardena
uin	910855
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>There are an estimated 1.2 million children living in workless households in the UK, down 67,000 on the year and down 665,000 since 2010. There are now a third less children living in workless households than in 2010.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/05/2019 14:55:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4498 label Biography information for Mr Ranil Jayawardena

1125584

registered interest
date	09/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Food Banks
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information her Department holds on the number of benefit claimants of who travel out of area to access a food bank.
tabling member constituency	Ogmore
tabling member printed	Chris Elmore
uin	252588
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The Department doesn’t maintain records on the number of food bank users. People can be referred to a food bank through a range of local referral partners. Although Jobcentre staff can also signpost claimants in writing to a food bank in line with national guidance, they are not required to maintain records on whether a customer has been issued with a signposting slip. As part of their wider community outreach work, Jobcentre managers can work with food banks in their area if they are invited to do so, to ensure that people are receiving all the support they are entitled to.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/05/2019 13:33:04 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4572 label Biography information for Chris Elmore

1125261

registered interest
date	08/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Discretionary Housing Payments: Domestic Abuse
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the discretionary housing payment funding allocated to claimants affected by domestic abuse in each of the last three years.
tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
uin	252018
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>Information on claimants affected by domestic abuse is not available to make an estimate of Discretionary Housing Payment funding allocated to domestic abuse victims due to data sensitivity.</p><p> </p><p>DHP guidance highlights the use of the fund in supporting victims of domestic abuse to move to a place of safety.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/05/2019 12:38:56 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1125414

registered interest
date	08/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Maternity Payments: Young People
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people under the age of 18 received a Sure Start Maternity grant in 2018.
tabling member constituency	Upper Bann
tabling member printed	David Simpson
uin	251984
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/05/2019 13:09:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1597 label Biography information for David Simpson

1125419

registered interest
date	08/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what financial support for the costs of childcare her Department provides to parents in receipt of universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Upper Bann
tabling member printed	David Simpson
uin	251987
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government recognises that childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours. We are committed to helping parents into work.</p><p> </p><p>To overcome this barrier to employment, Universal Credit claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70% on the legacy system. This can be claimed up to a month before starting a job, and can be worth up to £13,000 a year for families with two children.</p><p> </p><p>Over the last few months we have been trialling a more flexible approach to parents who do not report their childcare costs on time. Following a successful pilot, we are now updating our guidance, so that Work Coaches have more flexibility and discretion to support parents’ claims for this essential service.</p><p> </p><p>The Universal Credit childcare policy also aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/05/2019 13:04:12 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1597 label Biography information for David Simpson

1124929

registered interest
date	07/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Housing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make automatic payment of the housing cost element of universal credit directly to the landlord.
tabling member constituency	Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk
tabling member printed	John Lamont
uin	251332
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2019 answer text <p>Universal Credit payments are designed to mirror the world of work, with monthly payments reflecting the way many working people are paid. This model of monthly payments allows claimants to take responsibility for budgeting their own income and helps prepare them for getting back to work.</p><p> </p><p>Many claimants are capable of managing their own financial affairs and for these claimants a Managed Payment to Landlords (MPTL) is not appropriate.</p><p> </p><p>A claimant’s personal circumstances could change in a way which means that they need additional support at any stage of a claim, not just at the start. As such, we make sure that managed payments to landlords (MPTL) are available to Universal Credit claimants when appropriate, either from the start of their claim or at whatever point in which they need help.</p><p> </p><p>A MPTL can be requested by the claimant, their representative or their landlord and will be considered on a case by case basis and requests for MPTLs are dealt with as a priority. Landlords who are given access to the Landlord Portal are also given Trusted Partner status which allows them to make recommendations on whether an MPTL should be put in place. All MPTL recommendations from Trusted Partners will be implemented in good faith by DWP.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/05/2019 11:07:15 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4608 label Biography information for John Lamont

1124957

registered interest
date	07/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Mortgages
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the difficulties faced by universal credit claimants applying for a mortgage; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	251193
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The Financial Conduct Authority Handbook sets out rules and guidance for lenders. This provides that, prior to entering into a mortgage, a lender must assess whether the customer will be able to pay the sums due and must not enter into the transaction unless it can demonstrate that the mortgage is affordable for the customer (and any guarantor).</p><p> </p><p>It is up to individual lenders to determine how to ensure adherence to this requirement. Each lender is required to publish a written statement setting out the factors it will take into account in assessing a customer's ability to pay. This must, inter alia, address how income and expenditure is to be assessed, including details of the types of income which are acceptable.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/05/2019 12:55:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1125021

registered interest
date	07/05/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Coventry
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people affected by administrative errors made by her Department which led to the overpayment of benefits in Coventry.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
uin	251210
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is focused on paying people their correct entitlement.</p><p> </p><p>Administrative errors are referred to as ‘official errors’ which have arisen from processing errors or delays by DWP or a Local Authority.</p><p> </p><p>A quality checking regime is in place and this is helping address official error.</p><p> </p><p>National Statistics Fraud and Error 2018/19 published 9 May 2019, indicate that estimated losses from official error account for 0.4% of total benefit expenditure.</p><p> </p><p>Internal Management Information shows that 48k claimants with a CV postcode had an actual ‘official error’ overpayment in 2018/19.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/05/2019 16:33:14 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham